Food ration kits for sports and military use



Oct. 23, 1962 J. LAERUM 3,059,633

FOOD RATION KITS FOR SPORTS AND MILITARY USE Filed Nov. 21, 1960 3Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG.1

INVENTOR:

JOHA N LE RUM ATTORNEY J. LAERUM 3,059,633

FOOD RATION KITS FOR SPQR'IS AND MILITARY USE Oct. 23, 1962 3Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 21, 1960 INVENTOR: JOHA N L ERUM.

BY jm'w 7 ATTORNEY J. LAERUM 3,059,633

FOOD RATION KITS FOR SPORTS AND MILITARY USE Oct. 23, 1962 3Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed NOV. 21, 1960 351:lvnnllyll llrnvll I.

INVENTOR:

JOHA N L/ERUM.

BY r MM ATTORNEY.

United States Patent 3,059,633 FOOD RATION KITS FOR SPORTS AND MILITARYUSE Johan Laerum, Bergen, Laksevaag, Norway, assignor to said JohanLaerum, Johan Ernst Mowinckel, and

Hakon Bardsen, jointly, trading as Joh. Laerum & C0.,

Bcrgen,Laksevaag, Norway Filed Nov. 21, 1960, Ser. No. 70,471 Claimspriority, application Norway Nov. 27, 1959 6 Claims. (Cl. 126-262) Thepresent invention relates to food ration kits for sports and militaryuse, and kits containing emergency rations to be stored for distributionin case of a general emergency. It has been proposed in the prior art tomanufacture such emergency kits in such manner as will enable theenclosure or a part thereof to be used as a stove or heating stand.

The present invention has for its main object in part to improve theexisting ration kits, whereby the kits may be manufactured at a lowerprice while being even better suited for its intended use. A furtherobject of the invention is to enable the kit to be manufactured in awide variety of dimensions, without being limited, as in presentexisting kits, to dimensions corresponding to spe cific cooking vessels.

According to the present invention a food ration kit for sports andmilitary use and for use in an emergency comprises a box-shaped cartonhaving a closed bottom and cover flap portions, the cover flap portionsbeing integral with associated Wall portions of the main body of saidbox-shaped carton and being connected together along score linesenabling the cover flap portions to be erected from folded cover formingpositions to upright positions in which the cover-flap portions togetherwith the associated wall portions form a tubular heating stand open" atthe top, in combination with the feature of said carton forming anenclosure for foodstuff components comprising at least one box shapedmetal can having one pair of side walls of a length corresponding to theinner dimension in one direction of the carton, the other pair of sidewalls of said metal can being provided with tongue members formingsuspension means for suspending said metal can on the top edges of saidcarton when in use as a heating stand.

The invention will now be described further, by way of example only,with reference to the accompanying drawings illustrating one particularembodiment thereof and in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a blank for a kit carton according to thepresent invention in an unfolded condition;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the kit carton when closed;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the kit carton according to theinvention, shown in a condition ready for storage and shipping, an edgeof the carton being broken away to show interior parts;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the parts of the ration kitand the contents thereof, illustrating the different parts of thecontent and their relative positions within the carton;

FIG. 5 is a vertical sectional View of the carton of the ration kit;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a metal can or container incorporated inthe kit, partially opened; and

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the kit carton when in use as a stove orheating stand.

The kit carton according to the invention is manufactured from a blank10 made, at least in part, of a flame resistant sheet material, such asasbestos sheet laminated with aluminium foil, or any non-inflammablematerial ice which is able to withstand the heat from the burnerswithout catching fire or being destroyed.

This blank 10 is by means of score lines or creases 11 divided into twolonger side wall portions 12 and two shorter side wall portions 13. Bymeans of a strip 14 arranged at one side edge, the blank may be formedinto a tubular member having the folding creases 11 extending parallelto the main axis of said member, said tubular member having arectangular cross sectional shape.

At the lower end, the side wall portions 12, 13 are terminated by ascore line 15, a bottom portion 16 forming a continuation of each longerside wall portion and a bottom portion 17 forming a continuation of eachshorter side wall portion. The score lines 11 continue as dividing lines18 by which lines the bottom portions are separated, whereby one may, inknown manner, fold the bottom portions inwardly to form, by theapplication of adhesive or in other known manner, the bottom of a boxshaped carton.

A score line 19 defines the top edges of the side wall portions 12, 13.A top portion 20 forms a continuation of each longer side wall portionand a top portion 21 forms a continuation of each shorter side Wallportion 13. The score lines 11 continue as similar score lines 22.Preferably, the dimensions of the carton are so arranged that the heightof said top portions is equal to one half of the total width of thecarton. By providing diagonal score lines 23 in each of the shorter topportions 21, said lines 23 meeting at the centre of the top edge of saidtop portions 21, it will be possible to fold said top portions 21inwardly to be superimposed by the top portions 20, the latter portionsmeeting along a central line 24.

Adjacent to their lower edgesthe side wall portions 12, 13 are providedwith air intake openings 25 for the supply of combustion air to burnersarranged at the bottom of the opened carton when the top portions arefolded outwardly to form a tubular stove or heating stand.

The top edges of said tubular stove or heating stand may support acooking vessel resting on said upper edge.

As is shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a carton shaped main part 26 is formed,which may be covered by a conventional cover 27 in which thelongitudinal side portions 28 are provided with a finger recess 29.

With reference to FIG. 5, the main part 26 of the carton is composed oftwo separate blanks 30, 31 the lower blank 30 being made fromconventional cardboard, whereas the upper blank consists of a flameresistant material. The blanks 30, 31 overlap at a portion 32, the lowerblank 30 being super-imposed 0n the upper blank 31 at said overlappingportion 32. The air intake openings 25 are located beneath saidoverlapping portion 32.

By this arrangement, only the part represented by the blank 31, whichpart is directly subjected to the stove flame, must consist of theexpensive flame resistant mate rial, while the remaining part,represented by the blank 30, may consist of any material which isstrong, cheap and has good resistance towards mechanical stresses.

While again referring to FIG. 4, a ration kit of the present kindusually comprise a lower first tin can 33 having dimensionscorresponding to the inner dimensions of the carton, said can forming aclosed container enclosing all material in such manner as to be wellprotected against moisture and other detrimental influence, a sheet ofpaper 34 above said first tin can 33, and food blocks 35 arranged aboveaid sheet 34. The food blocks may, for instance, contain dehydratedsoups, cocoa, etc. A fuel container 36 and a second tin can 37 forcanned food are arranged in the same level as the food blocks 35 and acan opener 38, preferably of a known foldable construction, is arrangedabove the tin can 37. Finally, foldable drinking cups 39 of impregnatedpaper are arranged on the top. Other valuable accessories and condensedfood materials for use in an emergency situation may be incorporatedinto the ration kit, depending upon specific requirements.

In FIG. 6 i shown an opened can, for instance the lower container or tincan 33. According to a feature of the present invention, this can isprovided with tongue members 40 arranged at opposing side edges of thecan. Preferably, the tongue members 40 are integral with the cover ofthe can and are folded together with the folding seam to form a unitarystructure with the cover and the can after closing by the conventionalfolding technique. The tongue members may as shown in FIG. 6 facetowards the interior of the can to be protected from damage duringtransportation and handling, or they may, as shown in FIG. 4, bearranged at the outside of the can at 41, the latter being preferredwhen the can is entirely filled with such foodstutfs as pork and beans,which preferably are left within the can after opening, when the contentis heated for consumption.

In the can illustrated in FIG. 6, the tongues are folded outwardly toform hook members by means of which the can may be suspended on the topedges of the erected and opened carton, as illustrated in FIG. 7. Byarranging the fuel containers beneath the can, the content may easily beheated.

Preferably, the first larger can is used for heating soups, beveragesand the like applied thereto while the second, smaller one, preferablycontains meat, direct heating of the content within this latter canbeing preferred. Therefore, both cans are provided with tongue members40, 41, respectively.

In the preceding description of the sheet portion 31, the sheet materialhas only been described as a flame resistant material. Furthermore, ithas been mentioned that score lines are provided in the material tofacilitate folding.

However, it has proved diificult to find a commercially availablematerial satisfying this demand of being, on one hand, non-inflammable,and on the other hand easily foldable along score lines applied duringmanufacture. Consequently, an aspect of the invention relates to a novelmaterial for use in cartons for ration kits of the stated kind.

According to this aspect of the present invention, the sheet portion 31is manufactured by laminating asbestos sheet with aluminium foil. Anexcellent material is obtained by laminating aluminium foil on bothfaces with asbestos sheet, the asbestos being subsequently impregnatedwith an organic silicon polymer.

By this combination, a material having surprisingly well r balancedproperties for use as the flame resistant material in the cartonaccording to the invention is obtained.

When manufacturing this novel material, certain precautions must betaken to secure the best results. Thus, the adhesive used for laminatingthe materials together must be carefully selected, first of all tosecure a firm bond, and secondly to prevent the adhesive from strikingthrough the asbestos sheet.

It has been found that the best adhesive for use in the laminatingprocess should be an emulsion. Preferably, an emulsion of polyvinylacetate is used.

Further according to this aspect of the invention, aluminium foil of athickness of about 0.05 mm. (0.002) is continuously led through a pairof rolls applying polyvinyl acetate emulsion of a concentrationcommercially available for use as an adhesive. Two sheets of asbestoshaving a thickness of between 0.1 and 0.3 mm., preferably 0.25 mm.(0.01) are applied to the face of the aluminium foil, one on each faceof the foil. The laminated structure is led through the nip of a furtherpair of rolls to expel any air entrapped between the sheets. Thelaminated structure may thereupon be impregnated with t a siliconpolymer material to improve its moisture resistance, whereupon it may beprocessed further.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that the novel ration kitaccording to the invention is excellently suited for storage to bedistributed in emergencies.

What I claim is:

1. A ration kit for sports and military use and for use in an emergencycomprising a box-shaped carton having enclosing opposed wall portions,a. closed bottom, and cover flap portions, said cover flap portionsbeing integral with associated wall portions of the boxshaped carton,said cover flap portions being connected to the associated wall portionsalong score lines thereby to enable the cover flap portions to beerected to upright positions wherein the cover flap portions, togetherwith the associated wall portions form a heating stand open at the top,a heating means adapted to be disposed within said stand, at least onebox-shaped metal can having opposed side walls disposed within saidcarton and constituting a foodstuff container, and tongue members oneach of one opposed pair of side walls of said can, the other pair ofside walls being of a length corresponding to the inner dimension in onedirection of the carton, said tongue members forming suspension meansfor suspending said metal can on the top edges of the carton cover flapswhen in use as a heating stand.

2. A ration kit as claimed in claim 1, wherein the upper part of thewall portions of said carton and cover flap portions are made from aflame resistant material while the bottom and the lower part of the wallportions are made from cardboard.

3. A ration kit as claimed in claim 1, wherein the box shaped cartoncomprises an upper part of a flame resistant material, and a lower partof cardboard, said upper part overlapping said lower part and beingdisposed inwardly thereof, and air supply openings arranged adjacent thebottom edge of the lower part.

4. A ration kit as claimed in claim 3 including a separate cardboardcover arranged to enclose the top and a substantial part of the sidewalls of the carton, whereby a rectangular box shaped enclosure isformed in which all exposed faces consist of cardboard.

5. A ration kit according to claim 1, wherein said shaped metal can hasan outline corresponding to the internal dimensions of said carton, thetongue members being normally arranged to lie flush against the adjacentside walls of said can and to be foldable outwardly to form hook shapedmembers by means of which the can may be suspended on the top edges ofsaid carton when the latter is erected to form a heating stand.

6. A ration kit as claimed in claim 1 wherein said cover flap portionscomprise a first pair of flap portions integral with a first pair ofopposed side walls of said carton and a second pair of flap portionsintegral with a second pair of opposed side walls of said carton, saidfirst and said second pair of cover flap portions being integral andconnected along score lines at their abutting edges, a further scoreline extending from each bot-tom corner to the center of the top edgesof each of the second pair of cover flap portions.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS752,426 Stewart et al. Feb. 16, 1904 1,309,713 Alexandre July 15, 19191,445,070 Clune Feb. 13, 1923 2,027,296 Stuart et al. Jan. 7, 19362,462,160 Bryan Feb. 22, 1949 2,604,089 Peyser July 22, 1952 2,678,644Banks et al. May 18, 1954 2,800,893 Norman et al. July 20, 19572,985,164 Imoto May 23, 1961

